Thursday, December 29, 2011

LIST: TOP 20 Docs of 2011

Joshua Ligairi » 12.29.11 »


TOP 20 DOCUMENTARIES of 2011

20. Position Among the Stars
19. Life in a Day
18. Andrew Bird: Fever Year
16. The Arbor
13. Buck
12. The Black Power Mixtape
11. Urbanized
10. Tabloid
9. Senna
8. Sons of Perdition
6. Bhopali
5. Cave of Forgotten Dreams
4. Hell and Back Again
3. Nostalgia for the Light
2. Happy People: A Year in the Taiga
1. Convento

Runners Up: Bear NationConan O'Brien Can't StopInto the Abyss,  Page One: Inside the New York TimesProject Nim,  Shut Up Little ManUndefeated

Wasn't able to see: Abendland, Beats Rhymes and Life, Becoming Chaz, Bill Cunningham New York, Bombay Beach, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, Pina, Sing Your Song, This is Not a Film

Most Overrated: Being Elmo, Dragonslayer, Justin Beiber: Never Say Never, Miss Representation, We Were Here

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

BLOG: 6 Degrees of Justin Bieber

Joshua Ligairi » 12.28.11 »


I've been prepping my "Best Docs of 2011" list today and I found during my research, to my surprise, that the man who taught me the Cinematography merit badge in Boy Scouts is, in fact, the Cinematographer for Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. Just thought you'd be dying to know that.





His name is Reed Smoot and he's actually a pretty successful working DP, having shot several IMAX films, shot second unit for Spielberg on a couple of the Indiana Jones movies, and my personal favorite credit: Gleaming the Cube, yeah! Tip of the hat, sir. Thanks for the inspiration and early start.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

VIDEO: Drunk Christmas

Joshua Ligairi » 12.20.11 »

No, not this. The drunk Christmas in question is a new holiday-themed special from the folks who bring you the Funny or Die web series, Drunk History. I'll admit, I am not familiar with the previous installments in the comedic series, which seems to feature a lot of big alt comedy names from Danny McBride to Crispin Glover, but you can bet I'll be checking out their other videos forthwith.

The basic gist is this: Comedian Allan McLeod attempts to recite "The Night Before Christmas" while completely inebriated. Meanwhile, the tale (as told by blatoed McLeod) is played out by Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes, and Jim Carrey (as the jolly old elf, himself) to hilarious effect. The video was directed by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konners and shot by Ryan McNeely.

WARNING: If you are offended by strong language or drunken men, you will surely be offended by this clip.



And if you were hoping for The Pogues, I'd hate to let you down:

Sunday, December 18, 2011

PRESS: Salt Lake Now interviews Charlie

My friend Spencer Sutherland writes for Now Salt Lake, the weekly entertainment arm of the Salt Lake Tribune. He was a fan of the show and asked to interview Charlie. Of course, we love the publicity and it sweetens the pot to get some local love. Always nice when something works out in everyone's best interest.


Spencer Sutherland » 12.18.11 »

Charlie Andrews jousts his way to TV with KNIGHTS OF MAYHEM

For children of the '80s and '90s, the term "jousting" probably brings up one of two images: either a spandex-clad American Gladiator holding a padded stick or Heath Ledger's golden locks in "A Knight's Tale."

For Utah transplant, and six-time jousting champion, Charlie Andrews, there's nothing Hollywood about the sport. For years, Andrews has been working to bring full-contact jousting to the masses through live tournaments and, most recently, a six-episode series on the National Geographic Channel called "Knights of Mayhem." In February, the sport will get its greatest exposure to date, when Fox Sports airs a jousting competition on Fuel TV.

Andrews realizes that for jousting to gain widespread popularity, the sport will have to overcome some serious misconceptions.

"People think it's fake, that it's choreographed," Andrews says. "Their only exposure to jousting is hokey dinner theater with people dressed up in frilly costumes, play-acting with balsa-tipped lances."

"Frilly" is the last word anyone would use to describe Andrews, who looks more like the leader of a Hell's Angels posse. He adds, "We practice a hardcore, heavy armor, full-contact form of jousting called Realgestech. Picture two warriors, both of them weighing-in at over 200 pounds and wearing 130 pounds of armor, wielding solid hemlock lances, and charging at each other at 30 miles an hour on giant warhorses. That's a battlefield, not a dinner show."


Andrews isn't the only gruff one in the bunch. In fact, each of the knights featured in the NatGeo series looks like he could have easily walked right out of a mixed martial arts ring.
"I've done some mixed martial arts training and everything about the sports is similar, other than with jousting, we're on horseback," Andrews says. "It's mano y mano, man against man. In both sports you've got to be smart and physically tough. You've got to compete when you're injured. You've got to overcome your fear. You've got to be courageous going into battle. You could literally get killed out there."

For the long-term success of the sport, Andrews works to help bring new competitors into the field. Though these rookies may eventually challenge his title, Andrews has no plans for relinquishing the crown.

"I refuse to lose. I train hard. In fact, I train harder now than I ever did when I was coming up. You've got to hold onto that fire, that motivation to be the best. You've got to want it every match, every pass.

But, I don't think about any of that when I'm jousting. All I'm thinking about is how I want to go out and destroy my opponent. That's just encoded in my DNA. I come from a warrior bloodline. It's like I said in the first episode of the show, 'Once I get my helmet on and I'm in the list, you're just a body in a suit that I'm trying to knock off that horse.' It's live or die out there for me every time."

All six episodes of "Knights of Mayhem" are available now on iTunes and Amazon. For more details on Andrews, his fellow knights, and the madness of competitive jousting, visit http://www.knightsofmayhem.com.

Friday, December 2, 2011

RECOMMENDATION: The Cowboys' Christmas Ball

Joshua Ligairi » 12.2.11 »

What better way to kick off the Christmas season than with a great new country-themed Christmas song by The Killers? And a super-funny music video to boot. You can get the whole EP for $6 and all the money goes to a good cause.



Now, I know some of you are thinking, "But, Brandon Flowers just came out as a Mormon. Mormons hate LGBTQ. We should boycott Brandon Flowers!" What do you say, gay community, do you think writing six songs and donating a ton of money to fight AIDS is enough penance for Brandon Flowers for simply admitting he loves his faith? Not all Mormons hate LGBTQ, in fact, many of us support the gay marriage movement. I mean, Flowers does a duet with Elton John on the record for cripes sake! Give the guy a break, get into the spirit of the season, and please enjoy this fine tune from a fine band.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

VIDEO: 10 most racist moments in TV

Joshua Ligairi » 12.1.11 »

If there is one thing I really excel at in life, it is catching on to an online phenomenon about 2-3 years late--I'm spitballing on that number, but that's about average. With that in mind, I present to you, the internet craze of 2009: THE TEN MOST RACIST MOMENTS IN TV!